Change
by SingleMinded
Summary: When a simple cut is not that simple anymore. Jay is not showing up at work and Will thinks he's just simply overslept. This is about Halstead brothers. Mostly from Will's pov.


**Author's Note:** I have a lot of plot bunnies and I wrote them down, believe me. But nothing is ever finished except this one. I think I'm good with cheesy broment :) I started watching Chicago Med too since I follow CFD and CPD so I don't want to miss this one and you know what, I love Will Halstead so much. I saw him different than the one in CPD so tadaaa…. a Halsteads centric :) Some warning, all the medical jargon was fully based on my read and search only so spare me some okay.

 **Beta Reader:** Unfortunately it's not betaed. So all mistakes are mine.

 **Summary:** When a simple cut is not that simple anymore. Jay is not showing up at work and Will thought he's just simply overslept. This is about Halstead brothers. Mostly from Will's pov.

 **Disclaimer:** Chicago PD and Chicago Med belongs to Dick Wolf and NBC. This is just for fun. Title was from The Jamestown Story's song, Change.

* * *

 **Change**

 **by**

 **SingleMinded**

Will Halstead turned the door knob of his brother's apartment slowly. It was 7am, and the only thing in his head was his bed. Spending the last 24 hours in the ER really took a toll of his body. Sometimes he envied Rhodes - who had 16-hour-shift because of his attending status. He needed to survive one more year to end his residency and after that, everything would be normal again.

The apartment was dark apart from rays of sunshine behind the roller blinds. Will put his jacket and his car key on the couch before heading to the fridge. He was practically half asleep when he took out the carton of milk, pouring some in the glass. The milk was enough to contain his empty stomach for at least until lunch. He was too tired to even stop at the hospital's cafe for some early breakfast because right now, he really needed his sleep.

As he moved to his room, he stopped at Jay's, pushing the already opened door ajar. Jay was asleep, facing his back to him so he couldn't see his brother's face. It was too early to wake him up so he didn't bother to do it. Satisfied with what he needed to see, he closed the door carefully.

He didn't know when it started - probably after Jay was being taken by that Keyes guy - but it became a habit to check on his brother every time he was home from the hospital. Usually Jay would leave a message if he wasn't home at night so when there was no message, logically he should be at home. And he just needed to see that for himself.

Because deep down his heart, he kind of afraid if no message meant something else happened to Jay and he didn't know.

He spent the shortest time he ever took in the bathroom - emptying his bladder and brushing the teeth - before slumping his body heavily into the bed. Within a minute, he was fast asleep, snoring softly under the blanket.

...

The phone was ringing since forever but he couldn't pull his head out of his dream. He knew that he needed to wake up but his eyelids were too heavy to budge. After minutes of continuous ringing, he managed to stir his eyes open.

 _Hopefully, no emergency call from the hospital_ **.**

He was too sleepy to do anything medical related right now.

With a long grunt, he grabbed the phone from the night stand and stare at the screen.

Four missed calls from Erin. _Erin?_

That name made him half awake. He was about to call back when the phone started to ring again. And this time it was Voight.

 _What the hell?_

He was wide awake now, sitting at the edge of his bed as his finger punched the answer button.

"Hello?"

"Hello Dr. Halstead. Is your brother home?"

"What?" He raised his eyebrows, never expected such question. He was ready to hear any bad news but he didn't expect this so he was speechless.

"If he overslept, please wake him up and tell him to get his ass over here right now because we will move in an hour." Voight's voice clearly meant business.

Will was about to reply when he heard his brother's phone rang behind the wall.

"Yeah, I'll tell him." He sighed, slightly relief because now he knew that Jay was still at home.

He looked at the clock on the wall - 10am. There was no wonder people were looking for his brother, he was so late and he was done once he faced Voight at the precinct.

 _Better keep him alive then._

He rubbed his face a few times before walking out of the room to Jay's. He stepped inside Jay's room, noticing the phone on the shelf - far away from the bed. Jay was still in the same position when he left before just this time, he was cocooned in a blanket.

"Hey Jay," he slightly slapped his brother's back a few times, trying to pull the kid from his slumber.

When Jay didn't move, he tried to change tactic, using a rougher method.

He was about to playfully slapped his brother's face when he stopped midway, noticing something he should notice earlier. Quickly, he pulled the blanket roughly away - and his brother didn't show any sign of awareness.

The grey shirt was cladded to his skin because he was sweating all over his body and he could feel the heat – radiating from the sleepy form.

"Damn it, Jay."

He quickly touch his brother's clammy forehead just to clarify his expectation. Aside from the fever, the fast breathing drew his attention. Something clicked into his mind and he was automatically in a doctor-mode.

Carefully he held his brother on the back and shoulder to pull him flat on his back. The heart rate was too fast, he could even feel the heart pumping when he touched Jay's back. Cautiously, he pulled Jay's shirt up and he didn't need to go any further as a white bandage was visible as soon as he reached the abdomen - it wasn't really a bandage, more like a big gauze taped clumsily to the skin.

He peeled the gauze slowly just to reveal an ugly red-inflamed-cut with the obvious abscess. He heard a moan from the sick person but Jay was still out. Suddenly, rage was flaring in his chest.

Did his brother thought he was still in the army, leaving an injury unattended like that?

He huffed, continuing the physical examination to find any other possible injury that his reckless brother failed to treat. When he found none, he moved fast to the bathroom, grabbing the first aid from the cabinet - the one he provided, thanked to his lack-of-health-awareness little brother. His eyes noticed the bundle of dirty gauze in the bin - kicking himself for not noticing it earlier when he used the exact same bathroom before. As he put the thermometer under Jay's tongue, he grabbed his brother's watch from the night stand and start to count the heart rate and his fast breathing.

The thermometer beeped. 103.5 F.

 _Damn it. It's sepsis._

He changed the gauze to a clean one, wiping a damp cloth thorough his brother's face and torso, cringing as Jay moaned louder but still didn't awake. He prepped his brother as fast as he could before going to his own room to change for a decent clothes.

He didn't have the equipment and medicine to treat his brother and if it was really sepsis, he needed to get to the hospital fast. He was about to wear his shoes when Erin's name flashed on his screen again.

"Hello Erin. Yeah sorry, I forgot to call back. He can't answer the phone right now. He's not going to make it today. He's sick... No, no I can take care of him. It's just a fever. Hey, I need to go, I'll... I'll call you back."

That was Erin Lindsay, Jay's partner – and girlfriend.

He felt bad for not telling the truth but thinking that their boss would not appreciate it if he was down two fellows in a day, he better shut his mouth.

Will was ready but now came the hardest part - waking up his brother. Because like it or not, Jay needed to wake up or he would have a hard time dragging his brother down the stairs to the parking lot.

"Jay, hey brother. Wake up," he shook Jay's shoulder harder but he won't budge. _Maybe a lil slap will do._

"Jay, Jay! Help me now brother, you need to wake up," he slapped the pale face a few times and it seemed to be working when Jay started to stir.

"Come on," he didn't even wait for Jay to fully awake before pulling Jay's right arm around his shoulder. His left hand grabbed the sick man around the waist to support him.

"Where...we..going?" Jay slurred - obviously disoriented - but thank god, his legs moved along with Will.

"Hospital." Will said, dragging his brother down the stairs.

Jay was mostly awake when they reached the car but he was too weak to talk or move on his own. Will settled him into the seat and started the engine.

"You okay? Can you hold on?" He asked, noticing the shortness of breath as Jay's hand was roaming his chest.

Jay nodded. "It's just hard to...,"

"I know. I know. I'll fix it." He took one last worried look at his brother before driving away to Chicago Med.

...

As much as he tried to stop it, Jay was falling asleep again before they reached the ER. And Will was pretty sure he wasn't going to wake up soon.

"Dr. Halstead?" Maggie was there when Will wheeled his brother into the ER. "Isn't that you brother?"

He nodded. "He's sepsis."

Out of nowhere, Rhodes was walking beside him, clearly overheard their conversation.

"Are you sure he's sepsis?" Rhodes asked.

"Yes. Heart rate is 96." Will said firmly, pulling his brother's shirt up, showing the infected cut. He was cutting the shirt away, helping the nurses to put the electrodes on Jay's chest. Rhodes was pulling down the oxygen mask over Jay's face.

"Bp is dropping." April stated, drawing everyone's attention to the monitor. It was a slow drop but it was still dropping.

"Start him on the IV and antibiotic. Maggie, get the room ready. We need to remove the abscess tissue." Rhodes said, as he took a closer look to the inflamed cut.

"I'll do it." Will said suddenly. He was ready to go to the locker room to change into his scrub when Rhodes' voice halted him on his feet.

"No. You can't."

"And why the hell not?! He's my brother!"

Connor Rhodes looked at the red headed doctor in front of him, clearly got the emotional outburst.

"He's your brother. That's why you can't. Just let me do this. It's just a simple surgery, don't you even trust me?"

Will inhaled deeply, rubbing his face a few times to calm himself down.

"Just have some rest. It's your off day anyway." Rhodes said softly.

Finally, he nodded, staying behind as he monitored the motions in the room behind the glass wall.

...

Jay was diagnosed with severe sepsis.

The surgery was done. They started the IV treatment to maintain the blood pressure and increased the oxygen supply. The only problem was, the bacteria that was infecting Jay's bloodstream was still unknown so they couldn't start him on specific antibiotics to reduce the infection faster.

Will fidgeted in his seat. This was the first time he sat there as patient's family. Usually, he was there as the doctor. And it was already four hours in the hospital but the lack of progress to found out the real bacteria was messing up his mind.

He stared at the motionless figure on the bed, feeling helpless all of the sudden. Jay was asleep, after waking up in confusion a couple of times. He didn't talk much and Will thought he was in no condition to even answer any question.

He studied the monitor - heart rate was still high, oxygen level was controlled but the fever was something he concerned the most. Their treatment didn't seem to work.

"You okay Will?" He jumped, snapping his head towards the voice.

"Hey Nat. Okay, considering..." He motioned his brother with his head.

"You know what caused it? I mean the cut? Rhodes said it looks like a stab that end up a slash. Maybe if you can find the weapon, we can do some test." Natalie looked at him in concern, trying to be helpful.

Will looked at her with wide eyes, standing up so fast it startled her.

"Thank you. Thank you so much." He left the room as soon as he said that, leaving her speechless.

...

He didn't expect much but at least Natalie's idea was an option.

Will found an empty spot at the corner of the hallway. He dialed Voight's number as he moved restlessly at the corridor.

After five rings, a grudge voice greeted him "Hello Dr. Halstead"

"Hello, sir. I… I need some help, it's about my brother." He spent the next two minutes explaining the whole story to the older guy.

"And he told me he got the wound treated. That kid... " Will cringed at the chosen words after that.

"So, can you help me find the weapon?"

"Fortunately, I believe it's the dagger under the recorded evidences. Let see what I can do. I'll be there in half an hour."

"Thank you sir. Thank you so much."

He nodded and offered a small smile to Natalie as he saw her walking out of Jay's room. He walked back to his brother, once again occupying the empty chair.

 _Hang in there brother._

...

"Antonio already took the dagger to the lab. He will be there when the test is made and we will take it back with us. It's mandatory, I'm sorry." Voight uttered as soon as he found Will at the main counter.

"How is he?"

"Surviving. It's still crucial, the treatments are working but not as fast as we want. That's why we need to find the real reason so we can use a better treatment." Will said, leading the older man to Jay's room.

Voight didn't say a word as he stepped inside the opened door. He just stared at Jay's unconscious form.

"Did you tell Erin?" The first words he asked after a few moment of silent.

Will shook his head, "Not yet. You?"

"No. I don't even tell anybody except Tony."

Will sighed. "She will kill me. I lied to her."

Voight chuckled. "Don't worry. The only one she will kill is him." He gestured to the other Halstead on the bed.

They both chuckled.

After 15 minutes, Antonio joined them, hesitating at the door as he looked at his friend's condition. He shook his head, thinking at the kid's stupid decision to end up like this.

"They took the sample. Now what?"

Both Voight and Antonio looked at Will, waiting for an answer.

"Now, we wait."

...

That night Jay became worst. They needed to intubate him and started the vasopressors treatment to maintain his blood pressure. And at some point, they even needed another surgery to remove another effected tissues.

It was really a touch and go.

But at the end, they found the source of the infection and the new antibiotics treatment really showed a lot of improvement.

...

"Jay... I'm here... "

He heard the same phrase a few times - but different voices every time. He even heard Voight - well, that must be a weird dream. Because what was the occasion to make it possible.

The whispers continued.

"Wake up Jay."

He tried to open his eyes – he didn't even know it could be so hard. But he still did.

"He's waking up." And that's Voight's. Real Voight. But he was pretty sure he heard someone else before.

Erin.

"Finally, welcome back." She smiled. He could also see his superior, leaning against the wall behind her.

"Why..." His sore throat refrained him from voicing out his question.

 _Damn it._

He knew the feeling too much. He must had been intubated. The last time he had been in one was five years ago and he still could remember the uncomfortable and soreness he had for over a week.

Suddenly, a glass of water was visible in front of his face.

"Take it slowly," she helped him with the glass. He just realized that he had the nasal cannula under his nose and a lot more wires and cables attached to his body when he felt so restrained to just sip a gulp of water.

He took a couple of minutes to clear his throat before asking.

"Why...are you guys whispering?"

She gestured to his right, "Your brother's here. This is the first time I really saw him sleeping."

He tried to look as much as he could. Will was sleeping - in his maroon scrub. A baby blue blanket was covering him up to his shoulders. He looked exhausted, like he didn't sleep for days.

"What time is this? How long am I here?"

"It's been five days. I thought you must remember some because you were awake for a few times." Voight said, moving closer to the bed.

"I remember but..." He gulped, trying to play catch with his memories. "I thought it was the same day."

"Well it's not, kid." He uttered, studying the face in front of him. He had a lot to talk about but looking at Jay, he obviously wasn't ready for some long conversation.

"Let's go Erin. We still got work to do. Be safe kid. I'm glad you're okay but remember, there's a lot more explanation that you owe me. Remember that and prepare your head for the worse." Hank Voight said firmly. Jay swallowed, knowing by heart of what Voight was talking about.

The cut was deep, he knew that but he never thought it was going to be that bad that a little bandage couldn't do the trick along with some sleep. But five days in the hospital for a cut - he surely messed everything up.

Erin chuckled. "Come on Hank. Spare him a little." She giggled, finding herself some fun when she looked at Jay's terrified face.

They said goodbye when a nurse was coming to redress the bandages. Jay spent another hour looking out of the window – thinking. His back was sore because of too much bed rest. Five days was totally a long period to stay on a bed.

With a small grunt, he turned to his right side carefully - trying not to jostle any wires or his new bandaged abs - just to meet a pair of sleepy blue eyes staring at him.

They looked at each other without a word for quite some times before Jay couldn't stand the awkwardness anymore.

He cleared his throat for a couple of times. "You okay man?" He said, trying not to meet Will's eyes.

"I will if you are." Jay could hear the rage inside the short sentence. He gulped, suddenly feeling small again. So today, everybody was practically mad at him. Who ever thought that being sick was something so wrong.

"Whoa, chill bro. I'm sick here, remember," he tried to smile, trying to be funny. But the watery eyes before him made him stop. It was plainly visible that Will was holding himself from an angry outburst.

"Look." He grunted again, this time as he tried to hold himself up for a better position. All of the sudden, a pair of strong hands were helping him, supporting his upper body before settling him down half sitting on the pillow.

The fury emotion shifted to guilt. Jay felt so embarrassed, because his big brother shouldn't be the one feeling guilty over what happened to him when it was clearly his own fault.

He grabbed his brother's arm before Will managed to pull his hand back - startling the older Halstead.

"I'm sorry."

Will kept silent, looking down at Jay. He didn't expect Jay to look up at him so he just let him to keep talking.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you worried. I thought I can handle it. I thought that it was just a cut."

Will felt a lump in his throat as he spoke slowly. "Don't you ever do that again. I know I'm not a perfect brother, I'm not there for you in the past, but I realize my mistakes. You're my brother. You know how many times I prayed that the one coming in the ER wasn't you. You choose this job and I can't do anything about it, but would you at least take care of yourself. If you can't take care of a cut, how could I know if you can take care of yourself out there?"

Will sat down on the nearby chair, levelling his eyes to his brother's.

"Promise me that."

Jay nodded, "I promise, never again."

Will smiled, patting his brother's back a few time. "I'm glad you're okay, brother."

Jay smiled back, feeling grateful. He forgot Will was here now. He forgot that he wasn't alone anymore.

Never again.

 **The end.**

 **Not sure if this is a little out of character because we never see them both interact like this. So, I'd love to hear from you because reviews really move me to write more. Well, hopefully :) And one more thing, I'd like to know your favourite genre. You can put it in your review here or go to my profile, I started a poll over there, hopefully it's working. Thank you for reading.**


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